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Doing the Galapagos Islands in a charter yacht and some of the coastal ports in South America (Ecador and Peru). Sound like a great idea? Well for those of you interested in the possibilities, I think it might be in the same league as an expensive cruise,cost wise. I think it might be right up our line as far as size wise also. The charter I went on was about 16 people. It is great fun if you have an inquisite bent and people aboard who like to do things with people they like. It is "on board a ship together for a week ." You are going to the heart of the best marine life experience you can get. And you will see stuff you have never ever seen elsewhere. I am writing of my experience from memory so you will have to take it as a whole picture, and easy on the day to day details. I may not be sure on what came first, and on some other stuff. Sorry but my pictures are still overseas, so I have used some found online from various sites.

We would go into Guayquil, the second largest city. I actually came in from Peru on a bus. It is a beautiful city of lush tropical trees. Still with a white colonial look about it. You need spanish in some form to get around but they are friendly. We would spend a couple of days there. There are some interesting thing to do around the city, so would include a city tour, and perhaps something to the banana growing area. The Galapagos Islands are a plane hop offshore. I am wracking my brain to remember but say under an hour. They charge a big fare. $330. I will be checking on this. I think we would be best arranging things but you can do well in barter on the spot. However this item is not subject to barter. I was alone, but know that you can get on a good boat pretty easy. What makes a good boat? Most important in the trip is the group enjoying one another. It helps a little to have a couple of young people along or around who want to do it all, and do not tire. They keep the pace up and investigating going.If or when you tire of going ashore, you can kick back on the boat for a morning.

Everyone comes to see the " blue leg boobies" which are large sea birds. You will go ashore and go among the nesting colonies, and they will not fly or be afraid of you. You have to give them some space but they are not as other birds and fly off. They will stick to their nest and you can observe what it is about their blue feet that is their namesake and what it is about them that makes them interesting. As I remember, the eyes of the male are one way and the female the other way. I think one has a white around, and the other an all black eye. I really do wish I had my pictures to write from.

Going ashore is the main way it is done. We would usually anchor in a bay or cove, and then go ashore in a group in one or two boats. You must be agile. I can remember one area where the large male sea lion had taken up a place near where we would usually land. We had to go a bit futher up the coast line and come back in that case. The males are pretty protective and in this case, he looked like he was doing his protection of the herd act, and would keep us off. You will go right up next to the lying seal lions , seals and other creatures. It is first hand and while they do have a set pattern to doing it, you are seeing them like they lie all day and have for thousands of years. It is pretty pristine. We would do about a two hour hike around the various marine life and end up back at our starting point for a short trip back to the ship for lunch.

You usually do a morning and a afternoon hike ashore, so you are kept pretty busy. There was a day or two when we substituted doing the local small town, for the going ashore in nature location. The nature of this whole experience is one of "walking in nature" ; doing a trek in the wilderness where there is an abundance of marine life.

It is definitely not the beach vacation. Nor is it the sports thing. Ok?

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